


The Good Place

by orphan_account



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Good Place (TV) Fusion, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, the good place AU, watch the show before commenting lol
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-10
Updated: 2018-10-10
Packaged: 2019-07-28 21:41:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,615
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16250339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: "You, Alexander Lightwood, are dead. Your life on Earth has ended, and you have now begun the next phase of your existence in the universe.”a The Good Place au.





	The Good Place

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, as you can see from the tags this will be a Good Place au. It's not going to follow the show exactly. Some lines will be taken directly from the show (mostly from Michael), but not too many. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
> 
> This is just for fun. It's not beta read, and I'm not claiming to be a writer. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> EDIT: Please watch at least one episode of the show. Magnus is not as bad as he seems, and Alec is not as good. But since this is from Alec's point of view, he doesn't know everything lol.

_ Welcome! Everything is fine.  _ Alec blinks at the large words on the wall in front of him. He’s sitting on a wide, comfortable couch in a bright waiting room. The fact that he has no idea where he is doesn’t bother him. 

 

A door to his left opens, and a man steps out. He’s tall, even taller than Alec himself, and well dressed. In a fitted, charcoal grey suit paired with a kind smile, he looks quite handsome. If Alec had to guess, he’d say the guy is around the same age as his parents. 

 

“Alexander? Come on in,” the man says before turning to enter what appears to be an office. Alec enters and sits in front of a mahogany desk, the still-smiling man taking the seat across from him. 

 

“Hello Alexander. I’m Lucian, but you can call me Luke” he pauses and adjusts his jacket before once again fixing his smile on Alec. “How are you today?” 

 

“Please, call me Alec. Honestly, I’m a little confused. Where am I? What’s going on?” Alec says this all in quick succession, but doesn’t feel too concerned with the answer. The strange calm he’s felt since sitting in the waiting room is still present. 

 

Luke’s easy smile drops into a more serious expression as he begins to speak, “Right. You, Alexander Lightwood- or Alec, rather- are dead. Your life on Earth has ended, and you have now begun the next phase of your existence in the universe.”

 

Luke looks expectantly at Alec as he stops speaking, but he needs a moment to try and process what he’s just been told. He’s dead, and he’s more freaked out by that fact that he’s  _ not  _ freaking out than he is about having died. Honestly, Alec doesn’t even remember dying, and that bothers him for a moment before he realizes that he can ask Luke about it. 

 

“How did I die? I- I don’t remember,” he asks, brow furrowing. 

 

“Ah, yes. Well, in cases of traumatic or embarrassing deaths we erase the memory to make the transition a bit easier,” explains Luke, who then asks, “Are you sure you want to know?”

 

Alec nods his head, because even if he had a particularly gruesome or embarrassing death, he still wants to know.

 

“All right. You and your brother were at an amusement park, and he asked you to go on a ride called the “Slingshot”. A cable snapped while the two of you were in the air, and the structure collapsed, dropping you 200 feet,” Luke says this all methodically, as if it isn’t completely horrifying. 

 

“Is my brother okay? He wasn’t sitting with me out there, is he alive?” asks Alec, nearly choking up at the thought of his little brother dying during what was supposed to be a fun day, though he can’t imagine anyone surviving something like that. 

 

Thankfully, Luke nods. Alec sits back with a sigh of relief when something else occurs to him. “So is this Heaven, Hell, or some sort of in between?”

 

“It’s not the Heaven-or-Hell idea that you may have been raised with, but in the after life there is a Good Place and a Bad Place, generally speaking.  _ You  _ are in the Good Place. You’re okay, Alec.”

 

Alec exhales in relief. He’s briefly brought back to the time a homophobic classmate told him in no uncertain terms that he’d be going to Hell for being who he is. It hadn’t bothered him, but it’s nice to know that the bigots really were wrong. 

 

* * *

  
  
  


As Luke and Alec leave the office and begin walking through a small town, Luke explains how the Good Place works.

 

“The Good Place is divided into distinct neighborhoods. Each one contains 322 residents who have been carefully selected to blend together and create a blissfully harmonic balance.” 

 

Alec continues to observe the town as he asks, “Does every neighborhood look like this?” While it’s perfectly lovely to him, he knows that not everyone has the same idea of paradise. 

 

“No, some are colder, some are suburbs, others cities or farmlands. However, every blade of grass, grain of sand, and cloud in the sky has been precisely designed for its residents,” Luke says as they come to a stop in front of a record shop. Alec reads the sign, and then squints at a building across the street. 

 

“There’s a lot of record stores,” he says, frowning at a third one he can see down the street. Luke sighs.

 

“Yeah, those are in every neighborhood. Humans are really into nostalgia,” Luke clicks his tongue and shakes his head, placing his hand on Alec’s shoulder. He’s only maybe an inch taller, but it feels like they’re on completely different levels. Maybe because Alec still has so many questions, and Luke seems to have endless answers.

 

As if reading his mind, Luke says, “You’re gonna have a million more questions, I know. But right now, grab a seat,” he points to the village green, which is filling with people. “The movie’s about to begin.”

 

Alec makes his way over and takes a seat a few rows back from the large screen. With the thumb and forefinger of his right hand he begins to rub at his left. Without Luke to guide and distract him, the reality of his situation starts to weigh him down. No single thought can stick in his mind, and he’s becoming anxious about not knowing what he’s really anxious about. It’s confusing, and he’s thankful when the crowd settles and a video begins to play.

 

“Hello everyone,” video Luke jogs onto the screen, chuckling. “Welcome to your first day in the afterlife. You are here because you are all good people. You might be wondering, ‘How do you know?’ It’s simple. During your time on Earth, every one of your actions had a positive or negative value. Every item you bought, every person you did or didn’t help, every single thing you did had an effect that rippled out and ultimately created an amount of good or bad in the universe.” Luke pauses here as several different actions and their possible point values show up on the screen. 

 

The video cuts to a close up of Luke’s face, and he starts to speak again, “Once your time on Earth has ended, we calculate the total value of your life. Only the people with the very highest scores, the crème de la crème , make it here, The Good Place. Where does everyone else go, you ask? Don’t worry about it. Just remember that  _ you  _ are here because you lived one of the very best lives that could be lived.” The music changes to something softer as Luke starts on the next part of the video.

 

“ _ And,  _ you won’t be alone. Your true soulmate is here as well,” he crowd gasps, and video Luke responds, “That’s right. Soulmates are real. One of the people in the neighborhood is your actual soulmate, and you will spend eternity together.” His pleasant voice says from the screen, and Alec can barely breathe. He struggles to pay attention to the rest of the video, thinks he hears something about otters, and then it’s over.

 

The thing is, before his death, Alec hadn’t dated. Oh, he’d had a few crushes and had been asked out once or twice, but he never followed through with it. Other than school, and later work, he rarely left his house. On the rare occasions that he got to hang out with Max, they always went somewhere child friendly.  _ Like the amusement park _ , Alec thinks bitterly, before dismissing that thought for when he’s alone and can properly work himself up. 

 

The point is, he didn’t go out to clubs or bars, and most of his friends didn’t live near enough to drag him out. So the idea that he has a soulmate who he’ll spend forever with is kind of freaking him out. 

 

Before he can think on it for too long, Luke appears by his side. “Let’s get you to your house, I’m sure you’d like some rest. What did you think of the video?” Luke asks with a hopeful expression, and Alec immediately tries to quell the panic he’s been feeling ever since he heard the word ‘soulmate’.

 

“It was good! Really… informative,” is the lackluster response that leaves his mouth, but Luke doesn’t seem bothered.

 

They discuss various details about The Good Place, as well as The Bad Place and it’s residents as they walk, and Alec feels disheartened at the fact that he made it here without doing anything he would consider great, while so many others who he does see that way didn’t make it. Luke brings them to a stop and attempts to reassure him.

 

“Most people don’t make it here. But you, a firefighter who looked after his family his whole life, you’re special Alec,” Luke says earnestly, then gestures in front of him. “By the way, welcome to your new home.”

 

It’s a small, modern looking cabin sitting by the shore of a small lake. They’ve walked to the edge of town, and it seems Alec will get to live in relative solitude. The thought should make him happy, as he’s not really a people person, but truthfully he enjoys quiet interaction with smaller groups of people. He shakes himself of the slightly wrong feeling he has in his stomach. This place is perfectly designed for him, it’s meant to be his paradise, and he won’t complain. 

 

They make their way inside and Luke shows him a screen that’ll show him any of his memories from his point of view, a closet full of dark clothes reminiscent of what he wore while still alive, and his bedroom. It’s small and, like the rest of the house, rather dark. It looks like the kind of place someone would expect him to like, but it doesn’t feel like it’s true to who he is on the inside. He likes bright colors and patterns, but they weren’t practical for his everyday life. He likes wide open spaces with lots of natural light, but he rented his first apartment when he was young and broke and never bothered to move. This house would be perfect for the Alec he presented to the world, but not for the Alec he is.

 

Again Alec is hit with the feeling that something is a little off, but it’s not something he can put into words, and he doesn’t want to upset Luke who has been nothing but kind to him. So he decides to keep it to himself, and considers mentioning it to his soulmate when he eventually meets him. 

 

Luke pulls out a piece of paper and passes it to Alec, saying, “Here’s your soulmates address. I’m just going to get him settled, feel free to stop by and introduce yourself in say” he glances at his watch, “A half hour?” 

 

The paper has only an address and a name. Alec readily agrees, and Luke departs.

 

* * *

 

“Alec, come on in!” 

 

Alec enters a sparsely decorated bungalow feeling nervous beyond belief. A wide smile breaks across Alec’s face before he can even think about stopping it, not that he wants to. Standing beside Luke is his soulmate. His first thought upon seeing his soulmate is  _ how did I get this lucky?  _ His second is that he should probably introduce himself instead of staring like an idiot.

 

Alec doesn’t even have a chance to act on that thought before Magnus is walking over to him, all graceful movement and swaying shoulders.

 

“I’m Magnus. I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced?” Magnus introduces, smiling softly at Alec. 

 

“Alec,” is all that he can think to say, but Magnus continues to smile at him, still swaying, so he thinks it’s okay. Luke says something about tending to other residents, but Alec could not care less. He snaps out of it once Magnus begins making his way towards a wicker sofa in a cramped living room. 

 

The more Alec looks around the house, the less suited it looks to someone as tastefully dressed as his soulmate. The tiny home has only white wicker furniture, a small dining area with two chairs and a small round table, and a loft style bedroom. It looks rather homey, while Magnus himself seems glamorous. 

 

Deciding to ignore this, Alec follows Magnus to the wicker sofa. As they sit, Magnus starts off the conversation.

 

“So where are you from, Alexander? Assuming that is your full name, of course,” he asks while making direct eye contact with Alec. Alec can’t bring himself to look away, or even feel awkward. And why should he? This is his soulmate, after all. 

 

“Most people call me Alec. Or, called me Alec. But yes, it’s short for Alexander. Um, I’m from New York City. I’ve done a bit of travelling for work, but not much. How about yourself?” he asks, twisting his hands together. Talking about himself makes him nervous, he’s never quite sure what to say. Nor is he sure that what he does have to say is interesting enough.

 

“Well, I was born in Indonesia, spent a few years in London and Madrid, and eventually settled in New York myself. I’m surprised we never ran in to each other,” Magnus muses. 

 

“It’s a pretty big place,” says Alec, and then immediately averts his eyes because  _ it’s a big place, what a stupid thing to say.  _ Magnus doesn’t seem bothered by this, and almost looks charmed by Alec’s bumbling self.

 

“A big place indeed. It’s a shame we never met while alive, I would’ve quite liked to know someone like you,” which is a ridiculous thing to say, they barely even know each other, but Alec’s face heats up nonetheless. Feeling bold, he grabs Magnus’ hands.

 

Alec takes a deep breath, and has to look up at Magnus’ confused face, despite being a few inches taller than him. Alec’s nerves are reflected in his posture, which is usually perfect. He starts talking before he can think for too long, “Magnus, I have never seriously dated anyone before, so to find out I have a soulmate is… a little overwhelming,” at Magnus’ increasingly nervous expression, Alec rushes to continue, “But I am so glad it’s you. We’ve just met and you’re already so kind to me, I can’t wait to spend eternity getting to know you.” 

 

Instead of looking happy like Alec had hoped, Magnus just seems upset. His grip on Alec’s hands tightens, and he looks down at them before talking. Despite only just meeting, this seems uncharacteristic of Magnus. What he says isn’t anything Alec had expected, either.

 

“Alexander. You’ll stand by my side no matter what, right?” 

 

“O-of course I will,” responds Alec, truthful though taken aback. 

 

“Promise me. Say, ‘I promise I will never betray you for  _ any  _ reason’,” Magnus says, and judging by the firm expression on his face this isn’t a joke. 

 

Alec might be a little hurt if he wasn’t so confused. Instead of going with either of those two emotions, he decides to be as sincere and genuine as possible.

 

“Magnus, I swear that I will never say or do anything to cause you any harm,” promises Alec. Promises are sacred to him, and this is his soulmate. He means what he says with his whole being. 

 

Magnus nods and pulls his hands away, “Good. Because those aren’t my memories,” he points at a screen identical to the one in Alec’s house, “I hate this house, I wasn’t a travelling humanitarian who spent his whole life lobbying for change, and if I have to spend one more second sitting on wicker furniture I am going to lose it! I am not supposed to be here,” He finishes, turning to Alec.

 

All Alec can do is stare at him.

 

* * *

  
  


After a few more moments of silently staring at each other, Alec stands and heads to the screen. He flicks it on and taps on a random memory. A large hall filled with people appears, and together they watch ‘Magnus’ address the crowd and rack up donations for some type of charity.

 

“Are you  _ sure  _ this isn’t you?” Alec asks for the fifth time, and Magnus sighs.

 

“Yes Alexander, I’m positive that this is not what I did for a living. They got my name right, but that’s all.”

 

“How many Magnus Bane’s d’you think there are?” which is so not important, but it’s all Alec can think to say. He’s relieved when Magnus ignores this question and continues pacing. 

 

“Someone royally forked up,” Magnus’ brow furrows and he tries again. “Somebody  _ forked  _ up. Why can’t I say fork?” He looks genuinely offended, and Alec is happy that he actually has an answer to this question.

 

“You can’t swear here. Apparently a lot of the residents don’t like it,” he finishes with a shrug at Magnus’ incredulous look. It’s kind of annoying to him as well, but doesn’t stand out as much as the fact that his soulmate isn’t actually his soulmate. Bigger fish and all that.

 

“So if you aren’t this Magnus Bane, who are you? What’d you do for a living?” This seems like a good place to start. Magnus’ wince at the simple question makes him rethink this. 

“I owned a nightclub,” is all he says, and Alec frowns. 

 

“And?” Alec asks. There’s no way Magnus would have made that face if that was all he did.

 

Magnus gives in much easier than Alec expected, “Perhaps not every activity that happened in said club was completely legal. Oh don’t look at me like that Alexander! I wasn’t technically involved in anything illegal,” he says in response to the look Alec gives him.

 

“You facilitated the illegal activities though, you do understand how that’s almost worse, right?” Magnus waves a hand in dismissal of Alec’s statement. Alec sighs and gives up, for now.

 

“How about we go get some frozen yogurt and talk about this… situation in a more open place,” Alec suggests, and Magnus purses his lips in thought before nodding.

  
  


It’s a silent walk, and Alec spends it thinking about why this is happening. Once they’re sitting with their yogurt flavors of choice, he explains one of his theories to Magnus.

 

“Maybe it’s a test. If you go to Luke and tell him the truth you’ll pass and get to stay!” Alec says with more hope than he’s feeling.

 

“No. No way,” Magnus denies immediately. “I can’t risk going to The Bad Place, Alexander!” He looks genuinely frightened, and Alec doesn’t want him to go either, even if they’re not soulmates.

 

Alec doesn’t want to think about how depressing it is that he never dated while alive, and when he’s finally supposed to be with his perfect match, everything gets messed up. It’s even more upsetting that he and Magnus had instantly clicked only for this to happen.

 

Instead of focusing on that, he responds to Magnus, “Maybe it’s not actually all that bad. Let’s try to get some more information before making any decisions. We can ask Maia. Hey, Maia?” Alec calls, and Maia pops up next to them before Magnus can ask what’s happening.

 

“Hey, how can I help you?” Maia asks, keeping a straight face when Magnus jolts in surprise. Luke had told Alec about Maia while taking him to his house. It seems he hasn’t had a chance to tell Magnus.

 

A little aggressive after being frightened, Magnus asks, “Who the fork are you?” 

 

“I’m Maia. I’m the informational assistant here in The Good Place,” she answers, not unkindly.

 

Seeing Magnus’ still confused expression, Alec pus in, “She’s a walking database. Anything you need to know, Maia will tell you. Anything you don’t need to know, too. She seriously knows everything.”

 

Almost before Alec finishes his sentence Magnus turns to Maia, “There was a man in Peru around 2009, his name was Imasu Morales. Is he gay?”

 

“Yes,” Maia answers immediately. Magnus’ eyebrows lift a little in surprise.

 

“Huh, guess he just didn’t want to sleep with me.”

 

“That is correct.”

 

Magnus scowls at her and replies, “Whatever, I wasn’t that into him anyway.”

 

“Yes you were,” she says without remorse, and Alec has to bite back a laugh at the expression on Magnus’ face.

 

He decides to cut in before the situation can devolve any further. “Maia, what is the bad place like?”

 

“I’m sorry,” she doesn’t look very apologetic, “That is the one thing I can’t talk about. I can play you a brief audio clip, if you want?” 

 

They both agree and immediately regret it once they hear the screams of the damned. It’s probably the worst five seconds of Alec’s afterlife. 

 

Magnus levels him with an ‘I told you so’ expression, says “Well, it doesn’t sound amazing,” and that’s that.

 

Alec tosses their empty yogurt cups and they begin to make their way back to Magnus’ bungalow. 

 

“Alright, I think I’m just going to lie low and pray that they don’t notice me. Wait, that may be counterproductive. I’m going to  _ hope _ that they don’t notice me,” Magnus says as they walk past his neighbors’ lawn.

 

“I don’t know if I can help you with this Magnus. I think you should tell Luke the truth,” Alec can see Magnus gearing up to protest and hastily continues, “I don’t like dishonesty, and I don’t think this plan will work in your favor.”

 

“Alexander, you promised that you wouldn’t do anything to cause me harm-”

 

“And I won’t. I won’t tell Luke, I think you should tell him yourself.”

 

“Tell Luke what?” They both startle at the sound of Luke’s voice, and Alec turns to see him guiding two people over.

 

“Luke, hey! Uh, what have you been up to?” Alec asks, attempting to deflect from his and Magnus’ conversation. Luke goes with it easily.

 

“Magnus, Alec, I would like you to meet Isabelle and Simon. They’re soulmates and Magnus’ next-door neighbors!” He introduces them with a wide smile.

 

Simon is shorter than Alec and Magnus and wearing an outfit not dissimilar to something Alec’s little brother would wear. He’s got glasses on, and his bright smile is rivalled only by Isabelle’s. Isabelle is a short, pretty woman in very high heels and expensive looking clothing. She and Magnus seem like two of a kind, and her greeting is not a surprise to Alec

 

She eagerly holds a hand out to Magnus, and when he takes it she starts speaking. “I’m Isabelle, but feel free to call me Izzy. I adore your waist coat, you and I will have to go shopping at one of  the boutiques in town sometime!” She speaks quickly but clearly. 

 

Luke cuts in after an equally enthusiastic agreement from Magnus. “Simon and Isabelle are hosting a welcome party tonight and they’ve invited the whole neighborhood,” he says, and Izzy nods.

 

“I love planning parties. They’re such a great way to get to know new people. Since we’re going to be here for eternity, I figured we should definitely get to know one another,” Izzy explains, and Alec decides he likes her. She’s practical and reminds him of the- admittedly few- friends he had while alive. 

 

Isabelle turns to Simon, and Alec and Magnus follow suit. They’re both confused when he doesn’t speak, so they look to Izzy for an explanation. She sends Simon an adoring look and then begins to explain.

 

“Simon is selectively mute. He has trouble speaking to strangers and in social situations,” Simon gives them a nod and a thumbs up. Magnus hums in understanding, and Izzy speaks again, “So we’ll see you tonight? Great!” Luke claps once in joy, and they all part ways.

 

“So much for laying low,” Magnus mutters as they make their way to the bungalow.

 

* * *

  
  


Alec heads to his cabin to freshen up for the party, then makes his way back to Magnus’ before they head over. He knocks on the door and nearly falls to his knees when it opens. 

 

Magnus is the picture of elegance in a long, formal coat and fitted suit. His makeup is tasteful and subtle, his hair styled and streaked with dark red, and Alec can’t be blamed for gaping like a fish.

 

The way Magnus is eyeing him makes him feel more and less self conscious. He’d had to dress up for formal fundraisers held for the firehall, but he’d never been confident that he chose the right outfits. Tonight he doesn’t have to worry about that, if someone as stylish as Magnus is looking at him like  _ that. _

 

They stare at each other for a stupidly long time before Magnus closes the door behind himself and puts his hand on the small of Alec’s back, guiding him over to Isabelle’s enormous home. Magnus grumbles something about how his own house should be like this, and Alec pulls away from him slightly.

 

“Okay, help me out here. Tell me one good thing you did on Earth?” He questions Magnus, who looks at him blankly. “Just one thing to make me feel better about keeping your secret?” Alec’s almost pleading now.

 

When Magnus continues staring at him, he changes his tactic, “Forget good, let’s try neutral. What do you remember from the day before you died?”

 

Magnus purses his lips and squints his eyes, thinking for a moment before wincing and saying, “I don’t remember anything.” Alec widens his eyes at him, incredulous.

 

“Hey, just because these people are ‘good’, doesn’t mean they’re that much better than me.” Magnus states. Alec guides him around the room and they listen to people’s incredible stories about helping others. They make it through three before Magnus mutters something about getting a drink and heads to the bar.

Alec finds him a little while later and they head to the front of a crowd of people, watching as Luke begins to give a speech. Alec is surprised to hear that it’s the first neighborhood he’s ever designed, and listens intently as he talks about his history as an apprentice. He scowls at Magnus when he distracts him by stealing his glass of champagne and chugging it. 

 

The scowl on his face deepens when Magnus stops Maia and takes a handful of shrimp from the platter she’s carrying. Magnus makes a face and says, “What? They’re for everyone, aren’t they?”

 

“Exactly,” Alec replies quietly, tuning back in to Luke’s speech. He ends it by stating that everyone there is a good person, which makes Alec hold back a snort and Magnus take a swig of his drink.

 

When Magnus begins mocking one of the other residents behind their back, Alec decides it’s time to call it a night and guide him back home. 

 

Magnus stumbles through the door and barely makes it up to the loft bedroom, Alec following him. He’s so exhausted after this never ending day and he just wants to go home. After rifling through a few drawers, he tosses some sweats and a t-shirt onto the bed.

 

“Found you some pajamas. Good night,” he says, turning to leave. Magnus’ voice piping up from the bed stops him in his tracks.

 

“Alec! Alec, Alec. Wait. I’m sorry that you have to deal with this,” Magnus looks genuinely apologetic, and Alec sighs tiredly.

 

“It’s okay,” he holds up his hands and turns to leave again, but Magnus isn’t done.

 

“It’s not, though,” he sighs. “Do you think anybody cared that I died? I was an only child, orphaned when I was a kid. They weren’t great people, so they’re probably in The Bad Place,” Magnus drunkenly mumbles, but doesn’t seem too upset.

 

* * *

  
  


Alec wakes to thunder and screaming.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think so far, what can be improved, etc.


End file.
